Here at The UPAC Group we have made it our mission to help companies and brands become more sustainable.
Sustainability shouldn’t just be a buzzword for companies, it should be an integral part of their product or selling strategy.
Years ago, going green was something only forward thinking or niche companies would promote. Today, the opinions of the general public, specifically millennials has changed from cheap and cheerful to planet friendly or eco-conscious.
What is Sustainable Packaging?
Simplified- sustainable packaging is earth-friendly and doesn’t contribute to the further depletion of natural resources.
Various businesses are calling for more collective, eco-friendly efforts to sustain the planet. Since we only have one liveable planet, everyone has to play a part in preserving the environment.
To that end, if you’re an ecommerce store that wants to be more eco-friendly, one important thing you can do is use sustainable packaging. You’re in the business of selling goods to consumers, so you likely use a lot of different materials whenever you pack and ship products.
Choosing Earth-friendly packaging supplies and processes will go a long way in minimising the waste and pollution that end up in our landfills and oceans.
Sustainable packaging therefore, refers to the sourcing, development, and use of packaging solutions that have minimal environmental impact and footprint.
The Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) offers the following 8 criteria for packaging to be considered sustainable:
- Is beneficial, safe & healthy for individuals and communities throughout its lifecycle.
- Meets market criteria for performance and cost.
- Is sourced, manufactured, transported, and recycled using renewable energy.
- Optimizes the use of renewable or recycled source materials.
- Is manufactured using clean production technologies and best practices.
- Is made from materials healthy throughout the life cycle.
- Is physically designed to optimize materials and energy.
- Is effectively recovered and utilized in biological and/or industrial closed-loop cycles.
Now, we all want to make an impact, but how do we achieve this?
- Identifying savings- call our team to receive a no commitment packaging review. This will ensure your business is using the most cost effective and suitable solution for your business.
- Improving sustainability- Figuring out the lifecycle of your packaging materials can help improve the packaging process. I.e., considering alternative materials, using reusable packaging or with UPAC, you can simply return your unused or once used packaging!
- Process Improvements- Evaluating the processes within your business that keep it running smoothly without causing any disruption to the production line. Ie Just in Time or Kanban (those of you in manufacturing who have worked with, the excellent, Scottish Enterprise will know plenty about this!!)
So, what are the packaging options to help you achieve your green credentials:
Recyclable Packaging
If you want eco-friendly packaging that’s guaranteed to go down well with your customers and don’t know what’s best or where to start, look no further than recyclable packaging. Paper and cardboard based solutions are widely recognised by consumers as recyclable, and all councils accept these materials in recycling collections so its a sure fire way of ensuring your packaging has minimal environmental impact. Polythene and other plastic packaging gets a bad name, but it is also recyclable and can be dropped at a number of supermarkets and recycling centers. Make sure you communicate this to your customers though, as if they dont know, your packaging most likely wont end up in the right place.
Sustainable Packaging
Our aim is to be as sustainable and eco-friendly as possible, we know that as a supplier of packaging, we are in an influential position to bring around real change in the E-Commerce industry. That’s why we want to lead by example eradicating all unsustainable solutions from our offering and replace them with sustainable options. Sustainable packaging is critical to reduce the drain on new resources and minimise environmental impact, which is why we want to ensure shopping for sustainable packaging is as easy as possible. From classic cardboard boxes through to composable mailing bags, we have got you covered!
Compostable Packaging
The perfect situation with any product is when its finished with, it’ll break down in the elements and help the planet in some way. Compostable packaging does just that; decomposing, leaving no toxicity in the soil and giving back to the environment. Whether it’s padded envelopes or packing paper, cardboard boxes or tissue paper, we’ve got your compostable packaging needs covered. It can be daunting and confusing for those starting out with how to find compostable options- our options include; our packaging peanuts which are plastic free, fully recyclable and biodegradable, as are our cardboard boxes, our Eco-Padded Mailers and our corrugated rolls.
Biodegradable Packaging
Looking for packaging that leaves next to no impact on the environment, biodegradable packaging is for you. Biodegradable materials are designed to naturally break down into smaller and smaller pieces so ensuring your customers understand what to do with it once received it is priority for this type of packaging. Whilst any biodegradable product can be thrown in the bin with other general waste, landfills lack the microorganisms nutrients in soil to cause the material to break down so it can take significantly longer to decompose. Any material that is recyclable as well as biodegradable, such as paper and cardboard, should be disposed of by recycling as this process will happen faster and reduce the demand for raw materials.
Carbon Neutral Packaging
The UPAC Group is and will continue to work alongside suppliers and customers to ensure our line of carbon neutral packaging hits the sweet spot with your customers. Are you looking to reduce your brands carbon footprint? Get in touch, we have done the hard work for you with this line of packaging.
